Husky Jerk...bait of choice...for now

[Spankey]

Got on the river for a bit over an hour last night. Had added some Sea Foam to my tank and wanted to run it some. Was my biggest priority. My next couple of times out I won’t be able to use my OB (too big), have to use T-motor on that lake. 
 

Fished two points with steep drop offs. Had caught a couple of dinks and runts there last week. Managed two runts last night again throwing some Husky Jerks. The HJ 8 seems to be the bait of choice the last couple of weeks. For runts that is. 
 

I’m trying to get the feel of my old stomping grounds (home water) that I have not been fishing much the last few years. Bass fishing had turned sour and I’m just trying to touch base with this river section to see if it is coming around. A couple of factors most likely played into this. 
 

I’m gonna stick with it some this season and get a feel as to where it’s at or going. I’m doing well (last few seasons) greenie fishing on the lake. Not going to totally abandon that. Has worked out well to convert over. It’s just in the works for me to make something happen on the river. 
 

I’m going to take a day off soon to hit it hard. I’ve just been dabbling half hearted here early on. Want to be on it at 5:00 am sunup and seriously throw some baits. Step that HJ 8 up to a 10, get some Shad Raps & DT’s going and drag some tubes and t-rigs. Need to refocus and re-hit all of what was my better producing areas. 
 

But passing on some limited success with the Husky. Really has never been my first bait of choice but have been wanting to throw it more. Use to fish it a lot more often. I do use it through out the season and don’t limit it to colder temps. Pretty hard to fish one wrong, multiple retrieves can be done with it. 

[A-Jay]

Nice Job ~ 

A slightly bigger profile jerkbait (HJ10) might garner a few bigger bites for you

Fish Hard & Good Luck

A-Jay

[TheBasslayer]

I have a Husky Jerk that I bought for my dad, but he doesn't fish that often, so I just have it in my tackle box. Haven't used it as much as I want to, but I would like to try it. And like the post above says, I would up-size the bait if you want to catch bigger Smallies.

[Spankey]

8’s and 10’s in normally what I throw. I’ve never got real crazy on my color choices. Silver w/black back, silver w/ blue back, gold w/black back, Tenn. Shad and Firetiger. Basic and simple. If I get into the right shop I’d like to pick up and maybe throw the white ghost in the mix. The white ghost has a nice natural look. Not nude clear, more on the line of translucent white. 

10 minutes ago, TheBasslayer said:

I have a Husky Jerk that I bought for my dad, but he doesn't fish that often, so I just have it in my tackle box. Haven't used it as much as I want to, but I would like to try it. And like the post above says, I would up-size the bait if you want to catch bigger Smallies.

 

[TheBasslayer]

5 minutes ago, Spankey said:

8’s and 10’s in normally what I throw. I’ve never got real crazy on my color choices. Silver w/black back, silver w/ blue back, gold w/black back, Tenn. Shad and Firetiger. Basic and simple. If I get into the right shop I’d like to pick up and maybe throw the white ghost in the mix. The white ghost has a nice natural look. Not nude clear, more on the line of translucent white. 

 

I got my dad the Olive Ghost, but next time I go Jerkbait shopping I may pick up another color like Tennessee Shad.

[TnRiver46]

@Spankeyback on the river, just what we like to see

[Spankey]

47 minutes ago, TheBasslayer said:

I got my dad the Olive Ghost, but next time I go Jerkbait shopping I may pick up another color like Tennessee Shad.

Olive is a great color. That olive back looks real natural. I’m 100’s of miles from Tennessee and that color has always worked well up here. Lol. If olive is a color that you like to throw and do well with I’d like to run this bait past you. A bait and color I’ve always have done well with on the river. Bandit 200 Solid Olive with a very very small amount of red on the chin right at the bottom of the bill. Factory color. Good bait. Bandit Lures just have taken a bad turn the last ten years or so. They are nothing they use to be. That pattern should be able to be found. 

[Munkin]

What river are you fishing?

 

Allen 

[Dwight Hottle]

I used a lot of Husky Jerks in the DD version for smallies on Lake Erie. The best size was the HJ14 followed by the HJ12. The HJ14 in glass perch probably put about 20-25 smallies in the net over 6lbs. It was our favorite bait for several years before we branched out to something different. It's a natural born killer for waldo's as well. 

[Spankey]

1 hour ago, Dwight Hottle said:

I used a lot of Husky Jerks in the DD version for smallies on Lake Erie. The best size was the HJ14 followed by the HJ12. The HJ14 in glass perch probably put about 20-25 smallies in the net over 6lbs. It was our favorite bait for several years before we branched out to something different. It's a natural born killer for waldo's as well. 

I know I have to step up my size game. I’ve been at if for my whole life for these Smallies. By no means do I go at it ultra light or light but I get size shy on some baits. I’ve been eying up some HJ 12 deeps. Hard to find. I like that diving depth. 15+. 
 

Doing the greenie fishing the last few years I have a lot of my crankbait sizes and running depths stepped way up. 
 

Those 12 and 14 will drum up some Muskie for sure. Those 12 & 14 will give me triple trebles also. 

2 hours ago, Munkin said:

What river are you fishing?

 

Allen 

Zookill in Reading area. 

[Dwight Hottle]

48 minutes ago, Spankey said:

I know I have to step up my size game. I’ve been at if for my whole life for these Smallies. By no means do I go at it ultra light or light but I get size shy on some baits. I’ve been eying up some HJ 12 deeps. Hard to find. I like that diving depth. 15+. 
 

Doing the greenie fishing the last few years I have a lot of my crankbait sizes and running depths stepped way up. 
 

Those 12 and 14 will drum up some Muskie for sure. Those 12 & 14 will give me triple trebles also. 

Zookill in Reading area. 

 

I like your thinking about 3 over 2. We used to run both the two hook model & the three hook model at the same time to decide which got bit the most & the 3 hook model always won that contest. 

[Guitarfish]

I love the HJ8 for bass and troll the big jointed suspenders for trout.

[Log Catcher]

7 hours ago, Spankey said:

Bandit Lures just have taken a bad turn the last ten years or so. They are nothing they use to be. That pattern should be able to be found. 

Bandit was bought out by Pradco several years ago. They are good at ruining baits and colors and then raise the price on them.

[Spankey]

11 hours ago, Log Catcher said:

Bandit was bought out by Pradco several years ago. They are good at ruining baits and colors and then raise the price on them.

For sure.  I’m lucky to have many classic patterns and Special Runs. There was a factory guy (USA) we’d keep in contact a few times a year. There was a shop up here that was a full line Bandit dealer who since is long gone that would hook me up. It’s a shame things get to that point. Not too sure what Bandit puts out these days. I could only hope they still put out the chartreuse w/ black back and both of the rootbeers. As you say they (pradco) probably wrecked it. 

[Spankey]

19 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

@Spankeyback on the river, just what we like to see

I’ve got to get back in tune with it. I hope to live long enough to see it do a bit of a turn around. 
 

Some jerkbaits I fish I have a bit of a confidence level. But admittedly I am no Guru to jerkbait fishing. I’m certainly no KVD. I just play around with them and seem to do better with them when I’m not fishing them with a hardcore cadence approach.  

[Team9nine]

Was just out two days ago to one of the sub ponds picking off bass on an HJ fished ‘old school’  floating minnow-like. A favorite for me all through spring.

 

[Bluegillslayer]

2 hours ago, Team9nine said:

HJ fished ‘old school’  floating minnow-like.

That's my favorite way to fish floating jerk baits, twitch twitch pause SPLASH!!! 

[Dwight Hottle]

7 hours ago, Bluegillslayer said:

That's my favorite way to fish floating jerk baits, twitch twitch pause SPLASH!!! 

That’s where the name twitch baits came from. I learned about jerk baits from a really good fisherman who always called what we call jerk baits twitch baits because that’s how they were fished. It all started with the original floating rapala. 

[Spankey]

Not working tomorrow. I’m gonna do the calm before the storm. I believe I can catch quite a few hours before some heavy hitters start to move in and Friday looks to be a wash out. Flip flopped my day off. 
 

Gonna be throwing more at them, gonna be covering more water. All I need to do is hook up and head out. 
 

Tubes, grubs, chug-bugs, lite t-rigs, Shad raps, rat-l-traps and DT’s. 
 

Hopefully a decent bite is happening. Wouldn’t mind a few green fish mixed in there.  But as some times in the past I get myself all amped up and have everything layed out perfectly and things go bust or fall short of my expectations. Won’t matter. 

[TheBasslayer]

I tried the husky jerk for the first time a  few days ago. It worked, and I caught this, the 2nd big fish that I have caught from the main lake!

[Spankey]

18 minutes ago, TheBasslayer said:

I tried the husky jerk for the first time a  few days ago. It worked, and I caught this, the 2nd big fish that I have caught from the main lake!

Congrats. Good deal. Way to make it happen. As I said above I’m no Jerkbait Guru. Actually got way from using them for awhile. I pretty much fish I like a hack. But this season I’m fishing it like any other crankbait. If not just for the profile of the bait itself. I’m sure some guys on here could really give you an education on them. 
 

I need to find or order up that Rapy color in white ghost, natural ghost or minnow ghost it something like that. Not a nude color more of a translucent and white. HJ 10 or HJ 12. Saw it somewhere and thought I could make that work. 

[Fred Allen]

I got all these small mouths in local reservoir last week on a 2 inch original floating rapala in hot steel color. All twitching the bait. They either took it on the twitch or right after I started to reel it back in he nailed it. Got it on 8 pound fluro line in spincast was so much fun to fight them like this.

 

Also got tons of crappie, rock bass, blue gills.

[Spankey]

On 5/25/2021 at 7:34 AM, Spankey said:

Not working tomorrow. I’m gonna do the calm before the storm. I believe I can catch quite a few hours before some heavy hitters start to move in and Friday looks to be a wash out. Flip flopped my day off. 
 

Gonna be throwing more at them, gonna be covering more water. All I need to do is hook up and head out. 
 

Tubes, grubs, chug-bugs, lite t-rigs, Shad raps, rat-l-traps and DT’s. 
 

Hopefully a decent bite is happening. Wouldn’t mind a few green fish mixed in there.  But as some times in the past I get myself all amped up and have everything layed out perfectly and things go bust or fall short of my expectations. Won’t matter. 

It was a bust. Truly dejected. Totally at a loss. 
 

I have to pick up the pieces and move on. Been trying to not overthink it. More like oh well. Even though this has happened many times before, it bothers me more these days. Maybe taking it too seriously. 
 

Had rains move in last night, Friday and Saturday sizable rains coming (need it). Will plan on Monday, check river conditions and use lake as a back up. 
 

Highlight, and not much of a highlight, was catching 3 nice size white perch on a brand new broken back Shad Rap 7 that I got for my birthday. 

[TheBasslayer]

1 hour ago, Spankey said:

It was a bust. Truly dejected. Totally at a loss. 
 

I have to pick up the pieces and move on. Been trying to not overthink it. More like oh well. Even though this has happened many times before, it bothers me more these days. Maybe taking it too seriously. 
 

Had rains move in last night, Friday and Saturday sizable rains coming (need it). Will plan on Monday, check river conditions and use lake as a back up. 
 

Highlight, and not much of a highlight, was catching 3 nice size white perch on a brand new broken back Shad Rap 7 that I got for my birthday. 

I wish that I could even fish for Smallmouths more than once this year. I haven't had time this spring to go all the way to the river, or I went Largemouth Fishing. Hopefully I go this weekend though.